


These Things We Carry

by EmilliaGryphon



Series: Guardians of the Galaxy One Shots [14]
Category: Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies), MCU, Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, gotg
Genre: Apologies, Gen, Guilt, Hurt/Comfort, Team as Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-30
Updated: 2017-12-30
Packaged: 2019-02-24 06:10:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,289
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13207638
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmilliaGryphon/pseuds/EmilliaGryphon
Summary: Gamora confronts Rocket about how he shot her and seemingly abandoned Peter.Spoilers for GOTGVol 2.





	These Things We Carry

“Why did you do it?” Gamora shouted as she strode into the engine room. Rocket flipped his iron mask upward atop his head, turning towards her as she strode forward. 

“I am Groot,” the small tree creature backed away, sensing Gamora’s furry. 

“Gams what the…” a taunt green arm pressed against Rocket’s neck as Gamora slammed him against the metal wall. 

“I am Groot!” Baby Groot cried in shock, hitting her boots as hard as he could with tiny vines.

“You shot me!” Her eyes blazed, focused wholly on Rocket who scratched and clawed in panic against her iron hold. “You traitorous filthy vermin!” The raccoonoid stopped, eyes laced with hurt has he winced, panting. 

“I know you play like your the meanest and toughest but actually you’re the most scared of all,” Yondu had cut him open with those words not four days ago. Gamora’s eyes widened, awakened from the red fog of her anger. Rocket fell to the floor as she stepped away, releasing him. Groot frowning at the sound of the impact. 

“You did it,” she breathed, “you were the one who tazered me.” Rocket huffed for breath, his sides stinging. 

“I am Groot!” Groots small vines helped him up and he stood in stupor. 

“Drax tried to convince me it was him,” Gamora whispered to herself, putting the pieces together. “But I’m not that stupid, there’s only one person on this ship who’d abandon Peter, and that’s you.” Rocket’s ears flicked down, his small heart shaking.

“I didn’t abandon Peter,” he started, eyes glued to the floor while Gamora bore down upon him in vitriol. 

“Don’t try to defend yourself!” She spat. “I thought we were getting better at this, I thought we were finally becoming a family…I thought you were better than that! I should’ve known after you stole those batteries and almost got us all killed,” her voice was soft, but bitter. 

“I’m not defending myself Gams,” Rocket bit back a growl, looking up at her drawn face. Yondu’s words filled his mind, “I ain’t never done anything wrong my whole life rat. You need to let me do this.” How was it that someone he barely knew….knew him so intimately? “Yondu was gonna get Peter,” he explained. “He told me himself.” At this Gamora’s eyes widened, exhaling the anger and taking in the realization, Rocket couldn’t say he blamed her. Silence occupied them for a long while. 

“I’m sorry I called you a vermin,” she admitted; “I didn’t mean to…”

“Yes you did,” he shot back, glaring up at her. In the shadows of the turning engine her eyes flashed but she fell back into wordlessness. 

I know you steal batteries you don’t need, Yondu told him, and then the strange blue alien had spoken the truest of all truths. He had somehow reached inside of Rocket’s wretched little body, and uprooted all of his insecurities, all of his fears and laid them bare before his blind eyes:…you push away anyone who’s willing to put up with you, cuz just a little bit of love reminds you of how big and empty that hole inside you actually is. Gamora nervously tucked a strange of hair behind her ear, shifting her stance. “I knew Yondu was gonna get Peter Gams. The whole da’st planet was gonna blow, we were all gonna go with it if we didn’t get outta there.” He took a breath, remembering that fear that coursed through him, the terror of putting all of his faith in a ravager who had let his entire crew down just moments before. That jet back up to the ship, giving that order, was the single most terrifying moment of Rocket’s life. 

“You shot me!” She repeated, “and how did you know for certain Yondu was going to get him? You were ready to leave him down there to die!” Hands on her hips, it was Gamora’s turn to tear him open. Rocket leaned back against the wall, finding small comfort in the cool metal and in Groot who warily eyed the green assassin. 

Your right I did leave someone down there to die, but it wasn’t Peter, Rocket thought bitterly. “It was now or never, if we didn’t leave then, we weren’t gonna leave at all. I had to hope that Yondu was gonna get Quill, I knew he was but…no matter what I had to get us out of there and then you wanted to know where Quill was, but I knew if I told you, you’d go after him.” He looked upward at her, her eyes narrow, brow furrowed in speculation. “I…could only afford to lose one friend.” His voice broke as he glanced at Groot, that old sadness rising in him.

“That one friend being Yondu,” Gamora realized. “Not Peter.” Rocket nodded. 

“I know them scientists what made you never gave a rats ass about you.” Yondu had said. How right he’d been. But it wasn’t like that anymore. Yondu wanted to get Peter, if nothing else in his miserable, hard-lived life that da’st ravager wanted to do one last good thing, and Rocket had to give that to him. It was the least he could do. Groot had died to give Rocket a chance to begin again, with people who loved him, to become more then a scavenging thief but a Guardian of the Galaxy. So Rocket gave it to Yondu, a small shot at redemption, however inadequate. 

“You shot me, because you knew that if I went down there, Peter and I would die,” Gamora deduced. 

“I lost Groot,” Rocket choked, “I knew I was about to lose Yondu…I couldn’t lose Peter. “ He looked at Gamora’s now puzzled face. “…or you.” 

“Does Peter know about this?” Gamora inquired, she crouched then sat down across from him. Rocket shook his head, reaching up to remove the mask from his head and flung it haphazardly to the ground.

“You should’ve told us Yondu was getting him,” she chided. Rocket bristled, 

“No. I couldn’t.” Gamora frowned, but she didn’t argue the point. She looked at Groot who came to her slowly, vines extended out before his little hands in hesitant protection. 

“I smashed that ship into the Dark Aster,” Rocket’s voice shook. He wiped a paw across his face. Gamora’s eyes darted back to him as the raccoon like creature took a shaking breath. “I carry that…every day. I was the one who gave Yondu that opportunity, he deserved a chance to feel fulfilled like that, to show love after a lifetime of resisting it but,” Rocket’s small shoulders heaved. “But that don’t change the fact that I carry that too, and the orders that I gave to lift off. I couldn’t carry the weight of my guilt if I let anyone else get killed.” Gamora bit her lip, a million thoughts and words rushing through her head, but none came out. 

“Do you plan on telling Peter any of this?”

“No. Do you?” Gamora’s eyes looked back and forth, weighing the cost. 

“Maybe.” Rocket nodded, there was nothing else to say. Gamora stood, waving goodbye to Groot, then she turned to Rocket, mouth opening as if to say something. 

“I’m glad you told me this. I suppose I should thank you, for saving my life. Now that it’s all said and done.” 

“Your welcome,” Rocket forced, wiping his face. The shame in his chest threatening to burst out. She nodded, and departed. I know who you are boy, because your me. He was Yondu, not extremely reassuring, but if Yondu could be forgiven and accepted, and he’d already been forgiven for the batteries, maybe he still had a chance. 

Groot always thought so.


End file.
